Thank you, Mark Ijlal!

In my last post I was giving thanks to the man whom I feel was the inspiration to my interest in real estate from a very early age. Harry Bokano was the example I looked to in order to realize that “regular people” could own more than one house and eventually make a good deal of money over the long haul by doing so.

As the years went by, I always knew that I wanted to learn more about real estate but I didn’t know where to start. I didn’t really think to ask Harry how he got into real estate or question him about being a landlord. I was raised to treat issues like money as a very private and extremely personal matter. So, as a result, I thought it would be rude and intrusive if I were to ask Harry about his business. Besides, Harry was 30 years older than me and I wouldn’t THINK to ask such a think of my elders. Well, that was my loss and I think it was wrong for my parents to raise me that way. What could be more important than learning from your elders, the successful ones that is, about how to make money and invest?

Over time, like so many others like me, I would read books about real estate and eventually I bought the seminar tapes on the Carlton Sheets’ No Money Down program, but even that wasn’t enough to get me started. What really did it for me was learning from someone in my age category and someone who was doing what I wanted to do and doing it in my own back yard - so to speak. That’s where my business coach and mentor, Mark Ijlal, comes onto the scene.

In November, 2005, my wife, Analiza, was taking a 5-week vacation to visit her mother back in the Philippines. Our daughter had not been born yet, so it was just me and the family dog, Adam, staying home thinking of ways to get into trouble. Analiza had only been gone about 2 weeks when I took a step off the deep end!

Let’s take a step back for a moment. You see, a month or so before this time I was scanning the AM radio dial for something new and interesting to listen to. It was a Saturday morning when a lot of “do-it-yourself” shows are on. You know the kind: car repair experts, financial investment experts, nutritional supplement experts, real estate investing experts, etc. Well, you guessed it, Mark Ijlal was on the radio (WDTK, 1400 AM) on a Saturday morning with his real estate investing show, The Real Estate Warrior Show. After listening to him for a few weeks and hearing about his upcoming “Quick Start Bootcamp” for the new and budding real estate investor entrepreneur (me), I had the seeds planted in my mind.

So, while Analiza was away I decided to sign up for the one day seminar and that was the best 14 hours of my life! That is when Mark laid out everything I needed to do to get started in real estate investing. He taught me how to set up my LLC, how to get an employer ID number (which is like a social security number for your LLC), how to get free business cards printed up, how to set up a business checking account and apply for business credit, and how to find, evaluate, and bid on investment properties. There was much more covered, but needless to say more than just the basics were presented to me at that time and I had enough information to go out and get my career started.

When Analiza came back from her vacation, I presented her with what I had done.

1. ComfyQuarters, LLC was formed (filed articles of organization)
2. Employer ID Number was assigned (EIN)
3. Fax line was set up
4. Business cards were ordered
5. Business checking account was opened
6. Business line of credit was obtained

I was now in business!

After seeing all that I had accomplished in her absence, Analiza saw the vision and she was behind me in my mission. I had assigned her as the bookkeeper and accountant (CFO) and she took the position gladly knowing that I was on the right path to make this a successful venture.

So, thank YOU, Mark Ijlal, for teaching me what I needed to know to get started in the business I have wanted since I was a young boy. Mark gave me the actual tools needed to implement the dream.

What are YOUR dreams? Do you know what tools you need to make it a reality? Find others who share your dreams and who are living theirs. Ask them to show you how they did it. Don’t be shy!! Do not hesitate to ask others how they obtained something or have arrived to somewhere you would like to be. If they say no, then ask someone else -- but don’t give up on your dreams. I didn’t. And I still haven’t. I dream every day and I work a little bit more each day toward my goals.

I encourage you to do the same …

Thank You, Harry!

How I Got Interested In Real Estate Investing

I’m writing this post because I believe there are some of you who also have an interest in real estate investing, but you just don’t realize it yet. Hopefully, my story will spark that “something” within you that propels you down the path I followed and perhaps you will find your passion in life along the way.

So, here’s my short story …

As a young boy, my parents used to take us to see the Bokanos (Harry and Joan). My dad used to work in a slaughter house in downtown Detroit as a calf skinner and Harry was someone he worked with. They were friends outside of work and Harry had a cottage on a lake somewhere up north. I remember how much I enjoyed going there and skipping stones off the dock and even tried water skiing once. That trip ended early, though, when my dad tried to ski on one leg - it ended badly! Well, my dad was OK, besides the bruised ego and the beat red burns from head to toe -- I thought he was doing a trick as he cart-wheeled across the surface of the water -- but that was probably one of the best trips ever!

Anyway, Harry and Joan lived (and continue to do so) well below their means and sunk every extra penny into real estate (rentals). As I grew older and as I would listen to the stories being told, I knew that Harry was doing something very smart, although I didn’t really understand it all back then. But I can say that Harry is the original source of my interest in real estate (I was around 8 at the time) and I knew that it was a way of saving up for the future and that somehow it would mean that Harry would have money to spend when he was old.

Fast forward many, many years. While I was serving in the U.S. Army as an Infantry soldier (1982-1986), I became aware of a No Money Down program being advertised by Carlton Sheets on late night TV. Yes, THAT Carlton Sheets! I was so intrigued by his sales pitch and I new that there was money to be made in real estate so I did like many other investors have done - I picked up the phone, credit card in hand, and I bought the program! (I later sold my Selmer Tenor Sax for $500 to help pay for the program, much to my parents displeasure!)

Well, the program of video tapes and books sat on my shelves for many more years collecting dust (as they did for many other investors like me!) but I knew that money could be made in real estate if I would simply imitate the actions of others who were successful before me and if I would just work hard. I just didn’t seem to have all the pieces I needed to get started. I needed more details!

Next, (around 2001) I stumbled upon Robert Kiyosaki’s books, “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” and “Cashflow Quadrant”, and I must say that these books (among some others) helped change my mindset. I no longer see scarcity, but rather opportunity. There is no lack of money in the world, only lack of knowledge and creativity to move some of the money from the pile into my own bank account. I knew that my biggest problem was that I kept spending my money on things that took more money and didn’t return any. I learned from Kiyosaki that I had to spend some of my money on money-producing assets. That is, I needed to buy something that would produce more money over time than what I spent to acquire it. Does a car do that? Does an expensive closet filled with clothes or shoes do that? Does a swimming pool or big screen TV do that? The answer is, NO! These things take your money (liabilities) and give you nothing in return other than the entertainment and enjoyment you receive from these items.

But I wanted to start buying assets that would generate money, not just consume it. That’s where real estate comes in to the picture for me. I eventually met my business coach and the man who showed me the details I needed to get started, Mark Ijlal. In my next post, I will tell you more about how I met Mark and what he showed me to help me get past my hesitation to launch my business.

Hopefully, you will see yourself in this story at some stage. Perhaps you know deep inside that real estate is the place to invest. I hope my story encourages you to keep exploring, keep reading, and never stop dreaming about where you want to be next year, three years, and five years from now.

Dream, plan, then EXECUTE!